Genesee County Health Department

Better Life Through Better Health

The Michigan Public Health Training Center (MPHTC) is offering six continuing education classes at Henry Ford Health System in Detroit this spring. The offerings are a follow-up to the successful courses given by the Training Center in Flint last fall and include three new topics.

These six classes represent a partnership learning approach, training employees of state and local health departments, community-based organizations, health delivery systems and health plans, and those studying public health. All courses offer continuing education credits and a certificate for successful completion. As Robert Pestronk, Health Officer of the Genesee County Health Department, states: "Those fortunate enough to attend the courses offered by the MPHTC will bring back to their worksite new skills and awareness thereby enriching their work day and making their work more stimulating. Employers who support attendance will value the competencies gained in the areas of planning, data management, and evaluation and ultimately the improvement in the public’s health."

Classes scheduled for this spring include:

• NEW Budgeting and Accounting as a Tool for Management, taught by Dr. Jack Wheeler, a Professor of Health Management and Policy in the School of Public Health at the University of Michigan. This class meets April 10, 24, and May 8.
• Conducting Useful Program Evaluations, taught by Dr. Thomas M. Reischl, the Evaluation Director of the Prevention Research Center in the School of Public Health at the University of Michigan. This class meets April 11, 25, and May 9.
• Making a Difference: Accessing, Interpreting &Using Health Data, taught by Dr. Corinne Miller, Director of Epidemiology Services Division at the Michigan Department of Community Health, and Dr. Rebecca Malouin, an epidemiologist in the Epidemiology Services Division at the Michigan Department of Community Health and a faculty member at Walden University. This class meets May 1, 15, and 29.
• NEW Policy Advocacy: How to Influence Health Decision Makers, taught by Paul Shaheen, Executive Director of the Michigan Council for Maternal and Child Health (MCMCH), Alana Aronin, head of Aronin Consulting, and Michele Strasz, Director of Community Outreach for the MCMCH. This class meets May 2, 16, and 30.
• NEW Survey Design and Implementation, taught by Dr. John Sonnega, Research Investigator in the Survey Research Center at the University of Michigan. This class meets June 5, 12, and 19.
• Tradition and Transition: Public Health at the Crossroads, taught by Dr. Matthew Boulton, Chief Epidemiologist, Director of the Bureau of Epidemiology for the Michigan Department of Community Health (MDCH), and Dawn Sievert, Antimicrobial Resistant Epidemiologist for the MDCH. This class meets June 6, 13, 20, and 27.

All classes meet 8:30 am to noon at the Henry Ford Health System, One Ford Place, New Center Area, Detroit. The fee is $135 per course prior to the early registration deadline. A limited number of scholarships are available to employees of community-based organizations.

Visit the center’s web site at http://www.mitrainingcenter.org for registration forms, or call (734) 615-9439.

Carol Lutey of Mott Children’s Health Center of Flint notes: "The data course was informative and I particularly enjoyed the resources available through the Web. The homework forced me to focus more clearly on the course objectives. I look forward to receiving the spring schedule as I missed the first two classes in this series in Flint and would like to again participate in this learning opportunity."

The Health Resources and Services Administration Bureau of Health Professions (HRSA), part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, has funded 14 training centers nationally. The Michigan Public Health Training Center received a five-year grant from HRSA to develop a statewide training center and the Michigan Department of Community Health provided additional funding.

The Michigan Public Health Training Center offers training to strengthen technical, scientific, managerial and leadership skills of those who protect the health and quality of life in our communities. As with all the centers, the MPHTC strives to improve the competence of the current and future public health workforce by providing training courses based on needs assessment results.